Pass the ACFE Certified Fraud Examiner CFE-Investigation Questions and answers with CertsForce

TheFraud Examiners Manualclearly states:

“Accessing information set to private could result in claims under privacy laws. Thus, information on social media sites that is restricted by privacy settings could result in liability for fraud examiners due to violation of users’ privacy rights.”

Therefore,D is correct

Explanation with Extracts= TheFraud Examiners Manualexplains:

“Conducting digital forensic investigations in the cloud environment (i.e., cloud forensics) presents challenges not faced in traditional forensic practices… Some of the important challenges… Lack of frameworks and specialist tools, Lack of information accessibility, Lack of data control, Jurisdiction of storage…” .

Specifically: “With cloud computing, clients of cloud service providers do not have physical control of the media or the network on which their data resides, and this lack of data control can complicate efforts to collect data stored on the cloud” .

Thus,lack of data controlis a unique challenge.

TheFraud Examiners Manualdefines:

“Testimonial evidence is that evidence which is presented in the form of witness statements, whether oral or written, offered in response to questions” (Fraud Examiners Manual – Evidence section).The colleague’s statement overhearing a conversation istestimonial evidence.

Explanation: TheFraud Examiners Manualnotes that predictive modeling and data analysis allow fraud examiners to detect fraud by usinghistorical data to forecast future trends and anomalies. This matches optionB.

“Electronic payment records can be valuable in tracing investigations… they can reveal, among other things,assets the subject has purchased”.

They can also reveal loans, real estate taxes, and business locations, but not directly whether Lottie is “skimming” funds.

When introducing themselves, fraud examiners should avoid titles likeinvestigatororCertified Fraud Examinerthat might raise suspicion or defensiveness. TheManualrecommends using neutral titles such asauditorbecause it is less threatening and more acceptable in an organizational setting.

Duringadmission-seeking interviews, fraud examiners often employrationalization techniquesto help the suspect justify their misconduct and make it easier to confess. One of these rationalizations is thealtruistic appeal.

From the2014 International Fraud Examiners Manual:

“Facilitators of communication are those socio-psychological forces that make conversations, including interviews, easier to accomplish. These facilitators require a basic understanding of what motivates people. The facilitators are: fulfilling expectations, recognition,altruistic appeals, sympathetic understanding, new experience, catharsis, need for meaning, and extrinsic rewards.”

From theCFE Prep - Investigationsstudy guide:

“Facilitators of communication… include fulfilling expectations, recognition,altruistic appeals, sympathetic understanding, new experience, catharsis, need for meaning, and extrinsic rewards.”

????Application to Scenario:

Beta says:“I know you didn’t do this for yourself; it was for your family.”

This is aclassic altruistic appeal— reframing the suspect’s motive asselfless or for the benefit of others, rather than selfish wrongdoing.

The purpose is toreduce internal resistanceto confessing by allowing the suspect to rationalize the act as being for a noble reason.

Best practices for admission-seeking interviews emphasize building rapport, presenting a morally acceptable reason, and maintaining empathy to encourage a confession. The manual states examiners should “present a morally acceptable reason for the suspect’s behavior” and avoid creating hostility . Minimizing empathy is counterproductive andnot recommended.

“Once a suspect utters a denial, it becomes extremely difficult… therefore, the interviewer mustprevent an outright denial. Fraud examiners can use several techniques to stop or interrupt denials, includingdelays, repeated interruptions, and reasoning”.

Thus, the correct answer isD.

“The interviewer must not express disgust, outrage, or moral condemnation… the basic logic of obtaining confessions can be summed up asmaximize sympathy and minimize the perception of moral wrongdoing”.

Sympathy creates an environment conducive to confession, while other options (third-party presence, emphasizing immorality, or pressuring with time) are explicitly discouraged.